Isolation of non-LTR retrotransposon reverse transcriptase-like sequences from phlebotomine sandflies

Reverse transcriptase-like sequences (RTs) with amino acid motifs characteristic of non-LTR retro-transposons have been isolated from several medically important phlebotomine sandfly species. These sequences were amplified using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with primers based on conserved amino acid motifs present in previously described insect RTs. A further set of RTs were amplified using primers based on the conserved regions identified in phlebotomine RTs. The average similarity of the phlebotomine RTs to the Drosophila I, F and R1Dm elements was 28–29% between the closest primers used. Phlebotomine RTs were 31–62% similar to each other, the most dissimilar sequences coming from the same species. Several amino acid residues were invariant in the ten phlebotomine RTs, including motif Q(F/Y)GF, conserved in other non-LTR retrotransposons, but not in retrovirus or LTR retrotransposon RTs. The remarkable conservation of this distinctive domain of non-LTR retrotransposon RTs suggests it has a vital and possibly unique role in the mode of reverse transcription of this class of transposon.